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dinner with 5 veterinarians

October 28, 2011 at 3:59 pm

Elliott is currently over halfway through Captain’s Career Course, a requirement for all U.S. Army soldiers who would like to advance from the rank of Captain to Major one day. In this course of about 200 Captains, there are only 6 veterinarians. The veterinary world is small and so most of these vets already know each other, or went to school together, and have already built memories together over the years in the Army.

So it’s a pretty easy thing to have them over to dinner. They entertain themselves with stories of life pre-vet school and pre-Army, or regale each other with fantastical tales of how they saved the life of Chestie, the U.S. Marine Corps Band’s mascot, a chunky little bulldog who swallowed half a softball.

After the vets arrived, we wanted them to see our beautiful King William neighborhood (sorry I still haven’t shared photos… maybe tomorrow!), so we took a walk…

… and wound up at Blue Star Brewery, which you might remember from this post.

Hipster chick Lena fit right in with the brewery scene.

Later we reconvened at home for a hearty meal of baked chicken a la Chicken Cordon Bleu, mashed potatoes, whole wheat rolls, salad, French and Italian wines, and–for dessert–pumpkin bread. Elliott and I love cooking and entertaining, gathering friends around our table, and sharing a meal together.

After supper we might have turned on the TV. The TV? In your house? you say. But yes, we did, for something huge was happening on TV, namely my beloved Cardinals* vs. the Texas Rangers for game 6 of the World Series. What a nail-biter! My enthusiasm in cheering the Cardinals to victory may have roused my sleeping daughter. But ahhhh! can’t wait for game 7 tonight!

*Yes, I cheer for the Cardinals… and the Boston Red Sox. My grandfather took me to a game every summer in St. Louis, so the Cardinals won my heart early. The Red Sox claimed their own piece of my heart after Elliott and I lived and loved in Boston. Oh yeah, and the Nationals… yeah, they have a piece of my heart too. I love baseball! Just don’t ask me anything about football.

3 :: in family, friends, hospitality, Texas

the mountain house!

October 14, 2011 at 5:29 pm

When you go to the same university as your spouse, you are guaranteed to share a love of many things. Elliott and I both attended the University of Virginia, and we hold dear reading in the Gardens, hiking in the Blue Ridge mountains, worshiping at RUF and Trinity, living on 14th Street our fourth year, studying in the stacks of Alderman, and even nervously streaking the Lawn.

The joy sharing life like this is that you often get to know the same people through connections like your university. When Elliott and I began to date and compare lists of friends, we discovered we had some in common. It’s not often that we get to spend a lot of time with these friends anymore, especially now that we’re in Italy/Texas.

However, this weekend we felt lucky to have a chance to relax and enjoy the friendship of some fellow UVA friends in the beautiful Blue Ridge.

We drove down to Charlottesville on Sunday afternoon, arriving just in time to watch the sunset from the ridge. From that lovely spot we caught up over meals, hikes, and dirty dishes. On Sunday night we roasted s’mores over the first fire of the fall.

Mari and John practiced holding a baby for when they have one of their own.

Lena and I discovered the flowers outside the house before we headed off on a hike up to Humpback Rock.

I haven’t been up here in four years when I climbed it with a group of 4th year girlfriends. So much has changed since then in my life! Much as I loved that hike four years ago, and much as I loved life at UVA, I’d never go back. I love these two people too much!